Here we go with Season 5! I hope you enjoy this chapter. As always, let me know your thoughts.

May Carleton put the phone back in its cradle and sat down heavily on the chair in her study. She took a deep breath and noticed that her hands were shaking slightly. Her father had just phoned her from London to deliver the news that Wall Street had crashed and that the future of their business was extremely precarious. She looked around the tastefully furnished, wood-paneled room and found herself unable to grasp what that might mean. She had only ever known a life of excess and money – how would she ever be able to live otherwise? What would happen to her beloved stables and the horses she couldn't imagine life without? She took another deep breath. She had been raised to take life on the chin and keep a stiff upper lip, showing no emotion, and so she made a huge effort to pull herself together. Standing up, she steadied herself on the desk, then, holding her head up, she strode across the room and opened the door, heading towards the dining room where breakfast was served.

As usual, she was the first to arrive. May sat at the head of the table and a maid poured her some tea. Nodding her thanks, she picked up the cup with steady hands and took a sip.

Five minutes later, May was still alone and shifted in her chair. She was struggling to keep her emotions intact after the bad news and was frustrated at being kept waiting. Just as she was about to pick up her fork and start eating, the door was flung open and a young woman flew across the room, panting from having hurried to get there.

May took in the sight of her companion and sighed. The young woman's face was flushed and her long red hair was tied back but disheveled with tiny bits of straw caught in it. She was wearing a white blouse and riding trousers and, from the smell of her, has clearly just come from the stables. May supposed she should be grateful that she had, at least, taken off her boots and not brought her dog into the dining room. Her stocking-ed feet slid slightly on the polished wood floor as she came to a halt at the chair next to May. Sitting down quickly, she breathed out an apology.

"I'm sorry, May. I lost track of the time."

"Clearly. Rose, how many years have you been working with me now?"

"Two." She calculated in her head. "And a half."

"And in two and a half years, how have you not yet learned to manage your time properly? You have a watch – use it. You should change before breakfast, you know that. It's bad manners to turn up straight from the stables smelling of horses and muck and sweat. What if I'd have had guests? It really isn't on, Rose."

Rose looked at May in surprise. It wasn't like her to be this sharp.

"I apologise, May. The new filly had an excellent training session and I didn't want to cut it short. But, you are right, I should have been her on time and dressed appropriately."

May sighed. She knew she was being unduly harsh. It was because of the devastating news she'd just received. She looked at Rose's face which had fallen and reached over to pat her hand. She spoke more gently.

"You are a woman now, Rose. Your brother asked me to take you on here not just to learn the horse business but also to learn the business of being a woman. You're an expert in horses, but it seems you still have some things to learn about being an adult."

Rose frowned at the mention of her brother. She rarely spoke of him and May knew their relationship was strained. She thought back to the phone call she'd taken from Tommy two and a half years ago. She'd been surprised to hear from him. She still trained his horses, but their contact was purely business-related these days and usually conducted by letter.

"Tommy! What a pleasure to hear from you."

"Good morning, May. I have a proposition for you."

May wasn't surprised at his formal and abrupt manner. He had never been one for small talk. She'd heard he was married to Lizzie, his surly secretary, and that he had a daughter with her. She had ceased to be surprised by anything Thomas Shelby did and so had taken the news in her stride. She herself had had a few dalliances but nothing as passionate and exciting as what she'd had with Tommy. But she knew that to have Tommy was to have everything that went with him and she was grateful for a quieter life these days.

"Another horse for me to train?"

A quiet, humourless chuckle. "Not quite."

Tommy asked if May remembered his sister, Rose. May thought about the small girl she'd met in Birmingham – a bundle of energy and brightness and opinions. She remembered her fondly. Tommy explained that he was wondering if Rose could work at May's stables and stay with her for a few months. He said that Rose was ready for an opportunity to learn a trade and felt that moving in with May would be good for her. She "needed a good female role model in her life" and he would be grateful if May would take her under her wing for a little while. Reading between the lines, May understood that Rose was getting out of hand and that Tommy wanted to get her out of Birmingham. There were plenty of female role models in Rose's life – her aunt, her sister, Tommy's new wife – but May surmised correctly that Tommy wanted something different for his youngest sister. May agreed readily – she had sensed a kindred in spirit in Rose even as a child. A young girl who knew what she wanted and who loved horses. She felt like she would be a good influence on her. Having no children of her own and no close family, May felt pleased at the idea of having a young companion she could share her knowledge and experience with.

And so, not long afterwards, Rose had arrived full of scowls and sullenness but with an unmistakable love for the horses, and it was in this shared love that May managed to break through and grow a fond friendship with Rose. The few months turned into a year which turned into another and Rose was still there. She rarely went home. In truth, Rose was flourishing at the Carleton Stud. She was becoming an accomplished horse trainer and May now relied on her a lot in the stables. May had taught her how to run the business and balance the books, something of which she'd had a certain amount of knowledge from helping Michael with the Shelby Company books before he'd moved to America. Rose was now an able businesswoman and did as much work in the office as she did in the stables, though she much preferred the outdoors.

May had also taken it upon herself to educate Rose in the fine ways of society. Rose had been very rough around the edges when she'd first arrived but May had done a fine job at polishing up those edges. She took Rose to the theatre, the opera, poetry recitals, museums, lectures. She exposed her young charge to a wide range of people and opinions, hosting dinner parties, had Rose accompany her to parties and gatherings, picnics and celebrations. Rose learnt how to converse with all kinds of folk, how to understand politics and business as well as how to discuss the latest novel or play. She learnt how to eat and drink in company, what cutlery to use for which course, what wine to drink with which meat. May was proud of the way Rose was turning out.

And yet, there was a side to Rose that was unmistakably still a Shelby. She was highly intelligent, very controlled and didn't suffer fools gladly at all. May would cringe at the way in which Rose could tie a person up in knots as she debated with them using veiled and sometimes not-so-veiled insults to establish her dominance in the conversation. She was well-read, considered knowledge power and would wield it mercilessly. Rose refused to show any weakness and, it seemed, trusted no-one. She was unashamed of her background but didn't open up easily, if at all. At least she no longer carried a knife in her boot, May thought. She wondered how she would be able to keep Rose on if the money dried up.

"May, are you alright? You look a little pale."

May shook herself out of her thoughts and blinked at Rose. She was embarrassed to have been caught worrying, though she didn't miss the fact that Rose had side-stepped May's comment about what Tommy wanted for her. Tommy telephoned May regularly to find out how Rose was getting on. At first, he would also ask to speak to Rose, but Rose's mood after these calls always took a nose-dive and she would lock herself in her room or spend every daylight hour with the horses. Eventually, Rose seemed to distance herself from whatever it was that upset her after contact with Tommy and became more and more reluctant to take his calls. So Tommy had to get his information from May who happily filled him in on what Rose had been up to and how she was getting on. She could tell Tommy was happy and proud that Rose was growing into a well-educated and accomplished young woman. It was what he'd always wanted for her, but May could knew he missed her.

Rose went home on the odd high day and holiday but hurried back as soon as she could. When May asked how her time at home had been, Rose gave short, uninformative answers and changed the subject quickly. May often urged Tommy to visit her and Rose but he hadn't yet. May never did get to the bottom of what had happened between them but, whatever it was, May knew that neither brother nor sister were making any effort to deal with it. She caught Rose's concerned eyes on her and smiled.

"I'm fine, Rose, just hungry. I was kept waiting, after all."

Rose blushed slightly. "I'm sorry. I'll do better tomorrow."

"Didn't you say that yesterday?"

"Well, yes, but I mean it today."

May laughed, picked up her knife and fork and began to eat. Rose followed suit.

"So, the filly is coming on well, is she?"

The two women talked animatedly about the filly and other horses as they ate their breakfast. The maid waiting on them wondered, not for the first time, how two people could talk for hours on end every day about the same topic, and one as thoroughly boring as horses too.

May and Rose were just finishing breakfast when the phone rang. The food stuck in May's throat at the sound of the shrill bell. No doubt it was the beginning of many calls bringing worse and worse news about her financial future. She waited anxiously for the maid who answered the call to fetch her.

Sure enough, a minute later, the door opened and a maid moved swiftly across the room to where May and Rose were seated.

"Excuse me, Madam, there's a phone call."

May put her napkin on the table next to her plate. "Yes, thank you, Ruth. I'll take it in the study."

"Oh, I'm sorry, Mrs. Carleton – the phone call is for Miss Shelby."

Rose looked at her surprised. "Who is it, Ruth?"

"It's a Mr. Shelby, Miss – a Mr. Thomas Shelby."

Rose frowned and looked down at her plate. "Tell him I can't come to the phone, please, Ruth."

Ruth shot a glance at May then back at Rose. "I'm sorry, Miss, but he said it's urgent and that he knows you're not busy because it's breakfast time and you always eat breakfast with Mrs. Carleton."

Rose kept her eyes on her plate and frowned deeper. May leaned towards her.

"If it's urgent, you really should take it, my dear. Use the study."

Rose stood up abruptly and dropped her napkin onto the table. "Fine!"

Turning, she headed out of the door and towards the study. She dragged her feet a little, bracing herself for the phone call, trying to push down the emotions that had risen to the surface. She couldn't remember the last time she'd spoken to Tommy. She had a sudden image of him in her head, stood at his desk, phone against his ear, cigarette in his mouth, hand on hip, impatient for her to pick up the receiver. A sudden feeling of affection came over her and she felt annoyed. She didn't want to be pulled back to the family. She was a grown woman now, making her own way in the world. It was best this way, to move on, to make a life of her own away from her past.

She looked at the phone on May's desk and chewed her lip. Picking up the receiver, she sat down and put it to her ear.

"Hello, Tommy."

In his study at Arrow House, Tommy heard Rose's voice and relaxed. There she was, his Rose. He took the cigarette out of his mouth and blew out the smoke.

"Hello, Rose. How are you?"

"I'm fine, thank you. What can I do for you, Tommy?"

He smiled at her formal way of speaking. She had lost a lot of her Birmingham accent and spoke in a very upper class way. She sounded a lot like May. "Posh" Arthur had called it scathingly. He cleared his throat.

"I need you to come home, Rose."

There was silence on the other end of the phone.

"Rose? Did you hear me?"

Her voice came back, cold and distant. "I am home."

He closed his eyes and didn't bite.

"Rose, there have been some developments in America which directly affect the business and you are to come home to help the company. We need a board meeting as soon as possible."

Tommy had appointed Rose to the board of the Shelby Company Limited as an eighteenth birthday present, much to Finn's disgust. She had a title – Head of Domestic Purchasing – which meant nothing as far as she was concerned. Every now and again, she would be sent documents to sign and she was supposed to go to board meetings but always sent her apologies. She wasn't interested in the family business in any of its forms. She sighed and sat down.

"What developments?"

"Wall Street has crashed. Michael…" He spat out the name. "… didn't sell when I told him to and we've lost the lot."

Rose gasped. "The lot? Everything?"

"Yeah."

Rose processed this for a few seconds. "What will you do, Tommy?"

"I have a plan."

"Of course you do."

"We're having a meeting of the board of directors today at noon. You need to be here."

"Today? And why do I need to be there? What can I do?"

"You can be with your family during a time when we need to stick together. Everyone is coming. I expect you there too."

"I can't. May needs me here."

"Rose, do you think May is unaffected by the crash? She will have a lot to deal with there. She won't need you under her feet."

Rose flushed red with anger and stood up. "I will not be under her feet. In fact, I know her business better than I know yours. I'll be of more use here."

"It's not a suggestion, Rose. You'll be at the board meeting at noon. You should leave now so you can make it back in time."

Rose took a breath to say something else but heard the line cut off as Tommy hung up the phone. She swore. She had worked hard to distance herself from the family and the past. When she turned eighteen, she'd been hopeful that her future would lie in her own hands, that she would become more and more a partner in May's business and possibly, one day, open a stud of her own. But the truth was, as she knew very well deep down, that she could do nothing outside of Tommy's approval. Women's rights were moving forward encouragingly but the fact was that a young woman was almost completely dependent on the men in her life. It would take a huge risk on her part if she were to step away from the family fully. And hers wasn't just any family. She was a Shelby. The Shelbys didn't leave. As much as she deluded herself that she was now an independent young woman, she was, as she had always been, at the mercy of Tommy and his control.

So, twenty minutes later, Rose, Fred and a small overnight bag were being driven to Birmingham. As the miles were eaten up and her childhood home grew closer and closer, familiar feelings rose up inside her and she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Fred was lying next to her, with his head on her lap and he propped a paw up on her knee as he sensed her discomfort.

Rose played with his ears distractedly as she looked out of the window. Her emotions when she went back to Birmingham were always so mixed. She loved her family, she really did, and was always glad to see them and to make sure they were ok. They were always pleased to see her and keen to know how she was getting on. She regretted not knowing her nephews and nieces better. But it had been the right thing for Tommy to send her away, she knew that now, even if she'd resisted so hard when he'd first told her. She thought back to that day when he'd called her into his study to tell her he'd arranged for her to work and live with May for a few months.

Rose sat opposite him and stared at him in shock. This had caught her completely off guard.

"What?"

"May has kindly offered to take you on at her stables and accommodate you in her house."

"But why?"

"I thought you always wanted to work in a stables like hers."

"Well, yes, but not yet, not now, not so far away."

"Rose…"

"Why are you sending me away?"

He sat down, taking a drink of whiskey as he did so. He knew she'd see it in this way, but the truth was that he really didn't want her to leave. He wanted her close to him. He had a family now, he was a Member of Parliament, he was finally making a difference and he wanted to share that with her. He wanted her to grow up settled and happy by his side. But ever since she'd got back from Margate a year ago, she'd been different. Alfie's betrayal had damaged her deeply, he could see that now. Living for a week believing her whole family was dead still haunted her. She had become hardened and insular and, as much as he didn't want to admit it, was more like him than she'd ever been.

"I'm not sending you away, Mouse. I'm giving you an opportunity."

"I don't want an opportunity. I want to stay here and work for you."

Tommy sighed. "Rose, this is a good thing for you. You'll enjoy it."

Rose moved forward on her seat, desperate to change his mind. "Tommy, tell me what it is that you want me to do better and I'll do it. Don't make me leave home again."

"Where is home to you, Rose? Hmm? Here? Watery Lane? The fields out the back?"

She frowned at him, wondering where he was going with this. He continued.

"You come to the office every day, but your head isn't there, is it? You spend your evenings with Finn and Isiah and the lads, drinking with them. Or you're with the Lee twins. Do you think I don't know what you're doing with them?"

Rose stared at him, not willing to answer yet. She was waiting to see what point he was making. Tommy sighed.

"Theft, Rose? Really? Running round the countryside stealing trinkets?"

Rose sat back in her seat and glowered at him. Of course he knew. She was embarrassed. She never kept anything of what she took. She didn't steal for the gain, she did it for the adrenaline rush, to occupy her mind and take her away from any quiet moments when she'd have to think. She shrugged a shoulder.

"It's just for fun."

"Shelbys don't steal from old ladies for fun."

"It's not just old ladies."

"That's beside the point, Rose. Is this really what you want to be doing with your life?"

She paused. "No, not really."

"Then can't you see that this is an opportunity for you to make something of yourself?"

"But I don't want to leave Birmingham."

"Birmingham isn't good for you, Rose."

"'Course it is. It's where I belong. It's where we all belong."

Tommy regarded her for a few seconds, fiddling with the fingers which held his cigarette.

"Things were difficult when you came back from Margate."

Rose started and looked quickly away, down at her hands. She didn't want to think of that time. Tommy knew she didn't but kept going anyway.

"You were … affected by what had happened to you. So was I. Arthur told me to take time off, but I couldn't handle it."

Still looking down, Rose spoke quietly. "I remember."

"Yeah, well, eventually, I shook…"

"…hands with the devil and moved on." She looked back up at Tommy. "Yeah, I know, Tommy."

He took a deep breath. He knew that time had been hard for her, and when he'd come back to himself, she was gone. Not physically, she was gone mentally. She'd locked herself away inside and the Rose that now sat in front of him was not the Rose he had known all his life. She had finally finished building the walls around her heart and her mind and she was letting no-one in, not even him. It was self-preservation, he knew that. He'd been there. And it was accompanied with a growing sense of recklessness. Not only did he know she was stealing with the Lee twins, but she was also selling snow. Not his snow – she knew better than to steal from him. The twins sold the stuff they stole and gave Rose her share which she used to buy snow from one of Isiah's acquaintances and sell it on for a profit, mostly to women in the slums who were looking for an escape from the mundane and hard lives they lead. It was low-level stuff, nothing which brought much attention to her, but it was the kind of petty crime which he no longer wanted the Shelbys to be associated with. And it also had to potential to get out of hand. Rose had spotted a growing market and was gaining a reputation for herself. She also, it seemed, knew how to handle herself. Tommy had heard reports of threats and knives being drawn.

He cleared his throat. "Polly once said to me, 'You have your father's bedevilment and your mother's common sense. Make sure you listen to your mother.'"

In other circumstances, Rose would have laughed at his passable impression of Polly, but she wasn't in the mood for mirth. He pointed at her.

"You, Rose, you also have our father's bedevilment. You are drawn to the dark, enticed by the underside of life. It gives you a thrill, it makes you feel in control, it's an excuse not to deal with what's really going."

"Don't be ridiculous, Tommy. What are you talking about?"

"You know what I'm talking about. I can see it in you because I see it in myself."

She was done with this conversation. "Tommy, stop with all the devil nonsense. I'm just having fun. You did at my age, all of you did."

His eyes went cold. "None of us set a house fire which killed two women when we were your age."

Rose blanched and the room span. How could he know that? After all these months she'd thought she'd got away with it. Maybe he didn't know and just suspected her.

"What do you mean?"

Tommy leaned back in his chair, still regarding her. He hadn't suspected Rose initially. He, like everyone else, had thought that the fire which killed Alice and her mother had been an accident. But then the report came back that it had been arson. He had paid the local police to investigate thoroughly and the conclusion he drew was that the only person who could possibly hold a grudge against them was Rose, his own sister. Alice had betrayed her to Father Hughes and, if he were in Rose's shoes, he would also do everything he could to take revenge. In fact, Tommy himself had made inquiries about Alice in order to pay her back for what she'd done in his own house, but the church had hidden her well and then the Italians came along and he'd let that particular thread go. Rose, it seemed, hadn't. He spoke steadily.

"Mouse, once you start down this road, you can't ever come back. There is a different future for you than the one you think you're destined for. You need to get away from this life, you need to use our mother's common sense and choose a different path. You have so much potential, you can achieve anything."

Tears had now filled her eyes. She would have preferred Tommy to be angry with her, not show compassion. That was harder to bear. She didn't deserve that. She blinked them away angrily and snapped at him.

"You just want me out of the way so you can build your nice little family without me ruining it."

He shook his head. "That's not true. I don't want to out of our lives. I want you close to me. But you are better than this life you're choosing and you need to see there are other choices. I want you to come home regularly, see us for birthdays and holidays, but you have to get out of Birmingham. Rose. It will pull you down a path you don't want to be on."

Rose hated that he was making sense but refused to show him she understood what he was saying. The truth was that after Margate, she had given up caring about where her life was heading because she wondered what the point was. Alfie's betrayal had proved to her that she really couldn't trust anyone, that getting close to others only resulted in getting hurt. Tommy's life was becoming what he'd always wanted and she didn't know where she fit in. So she built her walls and retreated behind them, living for the moment, trying to forget the past and ignore the future. If Tommy wanted to send her away, so be it. She would protect herself and keep everyone else at a distance, including her family.

And now, two and a half years later, she was being driven back towards the life she had been trying to forget. The family business was facing a crisis and she couldn't shake the feeling that this visit home was going to involve much more than a board meeting.